venice tuscany - where to get my car

I would suggest you visit Venice, and take a train down to Florence. When you're through visiting Florence's tourist sights, then pick up your rent a car as you leave town. That way, you'll stay out of the dreaded ZTL's and avoid daily parking fees. Tuscany is best seen with a rental car, as so many cities are not on train lines. Taking buses is just not as efficient as having a car. You could pick up a car at an airport, however they usually come with very high service fees and taxes, vs. picking the car up in the city center. Hertz has a location @ 60 Sansovino, which is 2 mi. north of the Florence train station. I booked a car at AutoEurope.com cheaper (than Hertz direct) and picked it up there. I dropped the car at the Hertz train station location in Orvieto, 70 minutes by train north of Rome. There were no drop off charges. And Orvieto is a fantastic place to stay the night before hitting the "big city."

I have done it different ways. I agree with everything Dave said.
Worked best for us.

I also agree with David except for one thing: Via del Sansovino is NOT north of the train station. It starts from near Ponte alla Vittoria across the Arno from the Cascine and takes you to viale Talenti and the Isolotto district. West-Southwest of the station is more correct.

I agree with the rest. We did it that way but in the opposite direction. We returned our car to the airport, but they may charge a premium to pick one up there. I use Auto Europe and on their website you can play around with different options for locations to compare the prices. You can also call them toll free in Maine and talk to them. They are very helpful.

thanks to all. I will take your advice. sue